Fred's demon
by Child of nature
Summary: 2010 based. (what-if-oneshot) Nancy Holbrook can't bring herself to hate her old nemesis, and she's confused. But as she finds out about what really happened to Fred Krueger, the gardener of the Preschool, she finally know why she don't hate this burned up figure from childrens nightmares. WARNING: it contains love, but also friendship. Don't read it if you're not into Fred/Nancy.


Nancy Holbrook was no longer in her cozy bedroom. "Damn it!" She muttered and shot the dark boiler room a worried glance. She was back in Elm street...Freddy Krueger's hot and burning boiler room! It smelled bad and the atmosphere felt heavy and deadly. A hot stream from a nearby pipe hit her face and she gasped. She needed fresh air so badly!

Nancy walked pass black machines and filthy tubes and pipes, her feet slapping along the floor quickly and desperately. She was not alone, she could feel it. Krueger was coming for her.

Nancy stopped when she suddenly felt something hairy and cold under her feet. A dead rat, perhaps?!

"Ew! That's disgusting," she cried and jumped up in fear.

"Click, click." The noise came from behind her back, she could tell. And then she could hear a: "swish," and a: "Bang!" And then, a sharp cutting sound, as if someone scratched a metal wall with sharp claws...heavy steps...a throaty chuckle.

"Little Nancy..." He breathed deeply, then added: "My number one." His voice sent shivers down her spine. That familiar, evil voice that still haunted her nightmares... It made her frightened, and yet...excited? No! She did NOT find this exciting! Nancy pulled herself together and slowly turned around to face him, her thin nightgown flowing around her naked legs.

He wore the same old red and green striped sweater and black pants. And of course...the same old brown fedora on his head.

"I would have recognized that pretty little face of yours anywhere," he muttered harshly and lapped up every inch of her frame with his cold, blue eyes. "So...You've returned to me, good ol' uncle Freddy, after what you did to me?"

Freddy had so many times been thinking about her, the child who had managed defeating him. He wanted to slit her slim throat, cover her nightgown and her soft skin with young, fresh blood. But he didn't manage raising his arm, he simply just stood there, like an idiot, and stared at the tall youth in the dark. She sure was beautiful! Had he not noticed before? He hadn't seen her since that horrible day, when she cut his throat and said: "It hurts now, doesn't it? That's because you're in my world now, bitch!"

She was still the same, he could see that now. A young lady, ripe as a plum in June and with a skin pale as the moonlight. Set beneath perfectly shaped brows were frightened, dark brown eyes. She had a mature body, and it was not hard to catch a glimpse of it through the thin, silky fabric. "What do you want?" He after a while questioned.

Nancy shook her head. She couldn't help but blush. Oh dear, the way he looked at her... Her breath went heavier.

What the heck is wrong with me?! She screamed inside herself, confused and  
annoyed. This wasn't like her at all! "I want you dead, Krueger!" She somehow managed to shout at him. And it was true...right?

"Oh yeah?" He murmured and took a step closer to her, licking his dry, burnt lip. A hot stream came and Nancy's gown fluttered a little bit, Nancy gripped it as she remembered she had only the gown to cover her naked upper body. It was all too thin!

Freddy was so close that she could feel his warm breath against her forehead. And with his claws, he touched her thigh through the silky fabric and she gasped silently in pain. "Oh, did it hurt, little Nancy?" He chuckled.

"Go to hell! I want you to get out off my dreams, once and for all! Now it's your turn to..." Freddy captured her in his grasp, holding her tightly so that she wouldn't escape.

"take it easy, you wild cat," he said and chuckled, it was exciting to feel how she struggled to push him away...it really turned him on. He looked down and saw something red on her gown...oh, red looked so good on Nancy Holbrook! Blood of a young woman...Deliciously hot and pulsating.

"oops, my bad," Freddy said and bent down on one knee, still holding her in his tight grasp. He could feel how she froze as he lifted her nightgown a little and stuck out his red tongue to her silky skin, slowly licking the wound he'd given her.

Nancy trembled in his arms, she really didn't knew what to do. He was lapping up her blood! And still, she wanted to run away like a frightened child, but she didn't move ONE muscle. The tip of his tongue traced her burning skin and she had never, in her lonely life, felt something like it. He was showing her affection! A mans affection, oh...how she'd wondered how THAT would feel to gain...A Soft moan escaped her round mouth and she jumped when she understood that it came from HER mouth! Oh dear...That was NOT according to plan!

Freddy had just been lapping up the last, little ruby colored droplet from her soft skin, when something caught his attention...a soft moan. He looked up and peered into a pair of brown orbs in a flushed face. Oh, what a naughty girl...he stood up in his full height, smiling knowingly.

"I was only cleaning up that wound for you..." he smirked evilly as he touched her cheek carefully with his claw. "But it seems to me that you enjoyed it too much." Finally Nancy felt as if she "woke up", not from the dream that is. She pulled herself together and pushed him away.

"You hurted me, Freddy! I did NOT enjoy it, it was disgusting and I hated it!"

"Oh really? You know what, little dirty girl? I think you're telling Freddy a lie, you liked it, didn't you?"

Nancy HAD enjoyed it, he was right...but she would never admit it, it was more then enough for her to admit it to herself! She shook her head unwillingly as he once again held her tightly.

"Let go off me, Freddy!" She cried. Freddy chuckled at this. "What did you say? Lately you said Krueger, but now you used my first name."

"Well, Freddy is your name, isn't it?" Nancy hissed and once again pushed him away. "All I want is to see you dead!"

"Oh, little sweet Nancy...you don't mean that?" He was mocking her, and it annoyed her so badly. And still he managed scaring her, the fear of his claws would never disappear. How she wanted to make him pay, scare him like hell and hurt him, like that day she cut his hand and his throat. But she couldn't move a muscle, as if he could see and control her inner core...she was his puppet. No, no! She would never give up! She was NOT his puppet! And she would not feed him with her fear.

"Well?"

"Leave me alone, Krueger! You killed my friends and my mother, what more do you want!" She was screaming now, the fire he had woken by licking her wound, was dead. Why would she care about this monster?! He had murdered innocent children! He was ruthless and cruel!

"Hmmm, what more do Freddy want, you say?" Freddy chuckled deeply, licking his thin lips. "I want you to remember..."

"Remember that you raped me as a child?" She questioned with a cold voice.

Freddy looked at the young adult standing right in front of him. He had seen fire spit from her lovely chocolate eyes before, but now she was truly mad, her cheeks flushing in anger.

"Remember the man, little Nancy...not the fucking monster!"

"You ARE a monster! I saw the pictures, you did horrible things to me, and I was just a child!" Tears rolled down her burning cheeks.

"I wasn't expecting anything but hatred from you," Freddy said with a ironic smile. "But you liked what I just did, didn't you? You enjoyed my tongue," he said with a horrible laughter as he reached his dirty hands, the claws almost touching her skin, but she jerked back.

"I DID not, you pervert!"

"Oh yeah, I can see behind your little childish orbs, and I saw attraction...Don't deny what's clear to my eye, missy." He walked towards her, capturing the young lady in his arms. And he loved how she struggled.

"You can't run away from me, I'm real," he whispered in her ear, their chests almost touching. She looked calmly and coldly into his scarred face, as if she reflected for a moment, but then with resolution moved away from him again.

"I want you to leave me in peace," Nancy said, and added: "I don't know how to remember the man, all I can see is you, the monster."

"Then I'll show you the man," he said with a growl, his scarred face was blushing in pure anger. But suddenly, when he was about to rais his arms, the boiler room and Freddy Krueger himself faded and it got dark. The creepy sounds and the strange smells in the dirty boiler faded as well, and soon she woke up with a startled yelp.

She had survived! He had not killed her, but only talked to her! That was not like him, the cold-blooded murderer, at all! Nancy sighed deeply, glad she was awake and alive. But as soon as she had planted her feet on the floor, Freddys words came back to her as a creepy repetition, it rang in her head: "Remember the man..."

"What the hell did he mean?" She muttered to herself and bit her lip. She did not remember the man, if he ever had existed that is...she could only see the monster, a cruel and a burned figure with metal claws and dead bodies covered in blood surrounding him. Freddy Krueger, the cold-blooded monster...the burned demon who had harmed her, little Nancy Holbrook, the sweet child she once used to be.

Nancy's feet slapped along the hard asphalt leisurely as she walked home, finally finished with the LONG school day. It was getting cold and dark around her, but it didn't felt creepy, but calm and nice. The moon was peering down at her with a pale ghost light. Grey mist engulfed the green conifers that was growing at each side of the empty street.

Northwards, she could see a blueish color, shining carefully at her. It had to be fog, Nancy figured. At first she didn't like it and she stopped and held her breath, but suddenly she caught a glimpse of a tiny silhouette in the floating mist, it was a child, a little girl! She was all by herself in the dark, lonely and without her parents. Nancy decided to go and meet her, but she stopped as she finally caught a clear glimpse of the girls features.

She had pale red cherry lips; small curtains of tiny ivory teeth. Childishly tipped-up nose with brown, tiny freckles. Huge, laughing chocolate eyes. The clean blond hair was pulled away from the heart shaped face, gathered at the back of her head with a pink hair tie. She wore a white girl dress with pearl buttons and silk ties, frilled socks and small, shiny ballerina shoes.

"It's me!" Nancy said with a startled yelp, looking at the sweet figure in the blue fog. She was quickly making her way towards her. Tip-tip-tap, her tiny feet slapped along the black surface of the asphalt. Her childishly laugh rang in the heavy air, the sweet sound filling Nancys ears in a creepy way. "One, two, Freddy's coming for you. Three, four, better lock your door. Five six.."

"Leave me alone!" Nancy screamed. "I know it is you, Krueger! It doesn't scare me, this is just a vision!" Nancy hurried toward her younger self and shook the child in her arms.

"Stop singing, Nancy," Nancy hissed, but suddenly the girl was gone, disappeared in the dark. As the blue fog faded, Nancy turned away and hurried from the grey street. She could hear a distant voice, it did not sound like Freddy's, but at the same time it did...only now it sounded more like a normal humans voice. "Remember the man you used to adore..."

"You look so distant," Donald Holbrook told her daughter. Nancy looked up from the huge canvas she was drawing on. "You don't answer me when I ask you of something! And you didn't pay any attention to our favorite show! It seems to me that something's bothering you."

"I'm fine, really," Nancy assured her father and continued drawing, but Donald refused to leave her now, he kept looking at his daughter.

"You may tell me everything, sweetheart."

"I'm alright, dad! I'm just tired, all I want now is to draw." Donald sighed as he understood that his daughter wished to be left alone. He knew his Nancy very well, and this day Donald figured she wasn't in mood for chatting.

"Well, I'll leave you alone then. But please, do get some sleep, dear. You need it."

"Sure," Nancy murmured, but she didn't agree with her father. She did NOT want to fall asleep and once again meet Freddy Krueger. She felt as if she didn't hate him, and she had enjoyed how he'd lapped up the blood from her wound with his tongue. It was sick and unnatural! He was a cruel murderer, he had made her pay for so long. All he deserved from her, was hate and no affection at all! She didn't knew how to see the man in him, only the burned monster...And what's even worse, that she didn't knew how to hate him?! She once used to know...but not anymore, nowadays she felt weird and almost empty, kinda emotion-less.

"Good night, Nancy," Donald said, startling his thoughtful daughter. "Sleep tight."

"Good night," Nancy replied as she decorated the plain, white canvas, filling it with just a few colors. For the background she used mostly black, and some red and purple shades. In the middle of the canvas, a face was slowly taking its place, as if someone, (strange forces maybe), made her do it. It was a familiar face, but she couldn't place him, she simply just drew him, the mysterious character. He had a calm expression, the corners of his mouth curling only a little. He had clear ocean eyes and his smooth, bristly hair was dirty blond and well styled; not too short, and not too long.

"Who are you?" Nancy whispered as she worked on the highlight colors in the mans face, making his nose and lips more realistic. The ocean eyes were almost sparkling at her, laughing. She figured it was a nice man, and she did like his expression.

As she was coloring the mans high cheekbones, the thought of her younger self haunted her mind. She could still hear the sweet sing-song voice in her head, repeating it self over and over again. "One, two, Freddy's coming for you. Three, four, better lock the door..."

"Fuck you, Krueger," Nancy muttered as her drawing headed towards its climax, her brown pen stroking over every inch of the mans wrinkle less skin, he was soon finished, created by her hand. When Nancy after a while figured she was done drawing, the thought of Krueger and the weird vision faded and she smiled broadly. "I'm so proud of how this came out," Nancy said to herself.

Suddenly Donald knocked at his daughters door and entered, making his way toward Nancy. Nancy turned in her chair to look at her dad.

"Nancy, there is something I have to..." As Donald's eyes fell upon Nancy's finished art work, he stopped and forgot what he had intended to say. His jaws dropped open. Nancy saw his silently gasp, seemingly because of what she had been drawing.

"What's wrong, dad? Isn't my picture well drawn, huh?" Donald wasn't listening to his daughter and it kinda crept out Nancy, something was wrong.

"Why, Nancy?" Donald was leaning closer to take a better look at the drawing of the man.

"It looks just like him! Oh god, Nancy, w-why..._him_?!"

"Who?" Nancy questioned even though she began to understand her fathers behavior. Nancy knew. Somewhere inside her, she knew she had seen this man before. Suddenly she recognized the dark, thick brows, the intense ocean eyes and the high cheekbones. This couldn't be none other than...

"It's Fred Krueger!" Donald blurted out. "I know it was wrong, what the other parents, our neighbors, did to him. But he wasn't a good man, so why would you draw this...this criminal person, he harmed you ba..."

"I know, dad!" Nancy blurted out angrily. "I don't know why, but he just..." She shook her head, then added: "I just had in mind to draw someone random, but then HE showed up...I don't know why!"

"Ssshh, it's all right, darling," Donald said and took hold of her thin shoulders and Nancy nuzzled into the crook of his neck, doing something she would have done as a child. "It's just a memory, this is the man you used to play with as a child... a dead person from the past."

"I used to play with? Why are you bringing this up, dad?! He was a cruel person!"

"True. But I do remember something that your mother told me, many years before her death," Donald noted and shot the skilled drawing yet another look. Nancy backed away from her fathers warm embrace. "And?"

"She believed that Krueger had two different sides; a good side, and unfortunately.. a bad side too...that day he died, inside his boiler, we could hear him shout at us..."

"What did he say?" Nancy questioned.

"He said he didn't do it, and for a moment she believed in him, your mother. She couldn't help but feel sorry for him as he was burned to death, well...that's what she told me."

"You chased him and burned him to death," Nancy said. "You should have called the police." Donald didn't knew what had happened, and none of them, the parents, had found the cave they had been talking about. But Nancy knew better, she and Quentin, her x-boyfriend, had found the place and figured that Krueger had lead them there to make them remember what he'd done to them there. And Quentin had found the evidence...pictures of her as a child, harmed by Fred Krueger, the 'seemingly' nice gardener of the preschool. Nancy sighed sharply as she remembered those horrible pictures.

"Don't think about him, darling...he's gone and you'll never meet him again, he's just a distant memory. In a few years, when you've grown even a little more, the memories will fade, I'm sure."

Nancy nodded at this as she quickly picked up her crayons and her black pen, cleaning up the spot she used as her drawing-area.

"What are you going to do about it?" Donald questioned and looked at the drawing.

"I'll get rid of it!" Nancy told her father and crossed her arms. Donald reached out his hand, seemingly about to say something, but then he lowered his arm and shrugged. "Alright, suit yourself. But I suggest you'll get some sleep, it's getting late."

"Okay. 'Night, dad," Nancy said without breaking eye contact with the painted man at the canvas. Donald turned around and went out from Nancy's bedroom.

When she finally was alone, she faced the drawing and made a disgruntled grimace. "So... you are Fred Krueger, the gardener...?" Nancy took hold of it, squeezing it hard and angrily. Oh, how she wanted to throw it out of the window! Or crush it, or jump on it or, or...burn it, perhaps? Yes, that would be the best! A great idea indeed! "You ruthless, evil, cruel horrible bastard," she whispered through clenched teeth, her teeth pushing together in anger. "I'll burn you, 'cause I DO hate you." But somewhere deep inside, Nancy knew she didn't hate the half smiling gardener in front of her. She couldn't! She wouldn't! And she didn't knew why, was she getting mad? He had done something unforgivable for god's sake!

With a sharp sigh, Nancy placed the drawing inside the drawer under the bed, unable to destroy such a good drawing, art work made by her own hands!

"This is the best I've ever painted," Nancy told herself and she meant it, earnestly!

She didn't want to sleep! Her mouth said no, but her body and her heavy eyelids said yes; "please, get some sleep, silly girl!" Nancy had spent up all night many times before, but now she grew weary with each passing minutes. She tried to draw a little more, but her hands refused. She had spent hours on the last drawing, and so, it was NO use to try. She was not in the drawing-mood, only sleeping-mood. The cozy bed and the warm blankets called for her, so it seemed.

Before she had thought it through, she had unbuttoned her pants and her beige shirt, and let all of her clothes fall to the floor in a messy pile. And when the usual nightgown was clothed on, she lied down under the silky blankets, almost falling asleep as soon as the back of her head hit the soft pillow.

Nancy suddenly awoke, and because of the hot air she kicked back the covers and swung her legs out of bed, placing her feet at the floor. She had heard something, and all of the usual sounds and smells in her home, were different. But she was still in her bedroom, and luckily not in Freddy Kruegers boiler!

As she made her way towards the toilet, distant voices rang in her head. And then, as she was about to turn the knob of the door, it came to her like a dream, or like a long forgotten and distant memory; a flashback...

_"What's your name?" Nancy smiled at the new gardener. He was pulling weeds from a beautiful rose garden, humming softly as he worked. With a surprided mumble, the gardener popped up his head and stared at the sweet child who stood right in front of him. He smiled broadly, his ocean eyes shining, and it was not hard to see that he found the girl very cute._

_"Hello there, I'm Fred Krueger, but you may call me Freddy. And to whom do I owe the pleasure?" Nancy smiled too, happy that he immediately payed her some attention, unlike the other strangers she'd talked to._

_"I'm Nancy," Nancy told him with a huge, proud smile. "Nancy Holbrook."_

_"That's a beautiful name," Freddy noted, looking calmly and warmly into her heart shaped face. She had the cutest little tipped-up nose! And she had blond hair and chocolate eyes, very beautiful features indeed, Freddy thought. He stood up and brushed some dirt off his brown pants. "That's it, the weeds are finally gone." He smiled, patting her head carefully. Nancy giggled, peering up at him with laughing eyes._

_"Did I say something funny?" Freddy questioned and laughed at her cute expression. Nancy pointed at him with her tiny index finger._

_"Why is there soil in your face, Freddy? Is it powder, huh? Mom uses the same!" Freddy touched his cheek and then laughed even more. "You're right, little Nancy! I'm wearing some sort of...strange makeup, I guess." He chuckled, his ocean eyes sparkling._

_"Get down on your knee then," Nancy commanded, and Freddy loved how she tried to appear more grown up, like an adult. He did as told, finding it fun to let her be the determinedly one._

_Nancy brushed the soil off his fair skin, giggling and smiling like any other kid at her age. "There! You shouldn't be wearing makeup, it doesn't suit you, mr Freddy."_

_"Thanks, Nancy. And you're right," he said and once again stood up. Nancy tilted her head back to look at the tall gardener with the funny hat and the huge grin. She didn't knew this man very well, but she liked him already, there were something nice and almost sweet about him. "Are you finished with the rose bush?" Nancy then asked him, and the smiling man nodded._

_"I think I'll head toward the basement, I've just moved in there." Nancy was disappointed to hear this._

_"Oh, but why? Please, play with me, mr Freddy!" Freddy patted her head once again, smiling softly at the angelic little girl. "What about your friends, little Nancy?" Nancy shook her head unwillingly. "I'm usually playing with Quentin, and sometimes with Kris...but that's boring, all they want is to hang out in the sandbox!"_

_"What do you want to do then?" Freddy questioned his new little friend and bent down on one knee. "I want to do something exciting," Nancy said and jumped happily. Freddy laughed. "I don't doubt that, missy. So...what about tag? I'll try to catch you as good as I can, but I think you're faster then me."_

_"Yay, you'll try to catch me! Come, Freddy!" She took his hand and eagerly lead him with her, giggling madly. They made their way toward the playground, both of them smiling and laughing, just like the sweetest friend couple. Freddy liked Nancy Holbrook, it was something earnest and true about her. Not a single sign of falseness! She was happy and eager, just like any other children. This is how a perfect child should behave, Freddy figured; playing, laughing, smiling, giggling, jumping, dancing and singing. Just like a little star. A shining sunbeam from heaven...That was his little Nancy, for sure._

The memory ended there, and with a surprised yelp, another flashback popped up in Nancys head as soon as the first one faded.

_"Aaaah, it hurts!" Nancy cried as fresh blood ran down her cheeks, painting her fair skin with ruby colored liquid. She had fallen off of a tree and hit the face in the ground. She was covered in blood and dirt, and it wasn't a pretty sight. Her friends were surrounding her, all of them with curiosity written all over their faces. "Are you okay?" "Did it hurt?" "Woah! The blood comes out of you like a waterfall!" Their voices buzzed by her ears like a bunch of annoying bees. But it was óne particular voice which did not sound like a bee's annoying hum. It was her special friend's voice, the gardener Fred Krueger._

_"Give her some space!" The children moved immediately as the tall gardener made his way towards the crying girl. He bent down and took hold of her, her thin, little shoulders almost disappearing in his big hands._

_"Sssshhh, don't cry, little Nancy... Freddy's here." Freddy whispered softly, showing her love and comfort as he carefully pulled her in for a hug. He stood up from the ground, and in one swift movement swept her in his strong arms. She was as light as a feather._

_"Freddy, it hurts so much," Nancy cried into the hollow of his neck, her tears and blood mixing._

_"It's alright, I'll fix it for you," Freddy assured her as he made his way toward the basement, his feet slapping quickly along the stairs. Soon they found themselves in his basement, a home without fashionable interior, but with a cozy chair, a clean kitchen and a seemingly soft carpet which she immediately wanted to lie down on. Freddy put her carefully in the chair and fetched some paper and water. He began cleaning the wound, washing away each little droplet of blood from her skin, carefully nursing the poor little thing._

_Freddy then put on a piece of bandage, securing it with a slight pressure on the wound._

_"Do you think i'll survive, Freddy?"_

_"Why, of course, my little friend! You're saved." Freddy smiled warmly as he reached out his hand to wipe away her tears. Nancy sniffed, then smiled back._

_"Thanks for saving me, Freddy," she said and hugged him, resting her face against his hard chest. "I love you."_

_"I love you too," Freddy told her and gently stroked her back. "You'll always be special, little Nancy...you're my dearest friend."_

As the second flashback faded, Nancy found herself sitting in the bed, looking through the window with huge, staring eyes. She remembered the man, the person who for a long time had been distant and blurry. In the morning she had only been able to see the burned, finger-bladed monster, now she wasn't so sure anymore...maybe he did exist after all? The man...

"You cared about me...you protected me...then why did you hurt me?" Nancy whispered silently, looking down at her shaking hands.

"He made me do it."

Nancy didn't jump or let out a startled yelp. She knew he had been there, lurking in the shadows to give her the flashbacks.

Nancy turned in the bed, tilting her head to the right side to look at Fred Krueger, the man. As her eyes fell upon the familiar face, which wasn't burned and scarred like the monsters, a sudden anger filled her. She hurried toward him and grabbed his shirt collar, clutching him hard with both hands.

"Why would you hurt me in such a horrible way after what you told me! I was your dearest friend, you said! A special girl that you loved and cared about! But I'll tell you something, Krueger...friends never hurts each other!"

"Nancy...please..."

"Shut up, you bastard," Nancy cut him off and hit her fists in his chest.

"Please, let me explain, Nancy!" Freddy looked at her with sad eyes. "It hurts me to see you like this, but I don't blame you. I hate myself too! I did something cruel and unforgivable, and I'm still doing it...it's the monster inside me, I can't handle it. I have to kill, I just can't help it!"

Nancy looked at the tall and slender man, reflecting for a moment. Suddenly she became aware of his handsome features; the thick brows, the high cheekbones, the thick, bristly hair which seemed much darker now then before. And those warm, calm ocean eyes. He wore a blue and white striped shirt and she recognized it, he used to wear it as a gardener during preschool. And he also wore black pants with matching boots. And it seemed that he never grew tired of the old fedora, but now the hat looked clean and almost new. He looked just like the nice gardener she once used to play with.

"All right," Nancy said after pulling herself together, looking coldly into his face. "Explain."

"It's hard to explain." Freddy reached out his hand to touch her cheek, but lowered it when he understood that she wasn't in mood for physical contact. "But I'll show it to you." And before Nancy knew it, another dreamlike vision came to her. It was Freddy's memory. Suddenly she found herself in the old basement of the preschool. Right in front of her, Fred Krueger stood by himself. His eyes fell upon her body, though he wasn't looking...he couldn't see her.

"You would like to do it with her, the child Nancy...am I right?" A dark figure asked from behind Freddy's back. "Then do it, Krueger! Take her with you to the secret cave, you won't regret."

"NO! Leave me alone, y-you black demon! I would never do something as...ruthless as THAT, to my little Nancy, she's my friend! Please, let me be...haunt me no longer!" Freddy finally turned to look at the demonic, black ghost figure. But the figure, (it was hard to explain such a dark spirit), only chuckled at this, the throaty sound filling each corner of the basement with pure horror.

Nancy looked at the x-gardener with huge eyes, a totally different feeling grew, a feeling for him, her friend. He wasn't the monster, he had only been controlled by a monster. "Oh, Fred," she whispered as tears bubbled up in her eyes.

"No, let me be! I refuse to listen to you, you can't control me! I'm not going to hurt the children, especially not Nancy Holbrook!"

"You're telling me a lie, Krueger...I know what you truly want, and I'm helping you." The black figure floated slowly toward Freddy, smirking. His red eyes were sparkling. "NO!" Freddy screamed as the demon took hold of him and slowly went inside his body. An evil laugh rang in the air as Freddy jerked back with a startled yelp. "What are you doing!?" Freddy shrieked.

"You can't do this to me, I don't want your soul inside of me!" But the demon didn't listen to the desperate man. He laughed horribly. And since he was "inside" of Freddy, Freddy laughed as well...the monster controlled his actions and movements, wheter he liked it or not. He was captured, forced to become another man, the monster who kills children...

Nancy soon found herself in her bedroom, sitting in the bed right next to Freddy. She looked at him with huge, tearful eyes. "Oh, I'm so sorry...So it wasn't you? We all were wrong, my friends and I?"

"Yes, I didn't want to harm you kids. And believe me, I really tried to resist the evil forces...but I couldn't, I wasn't strong enough."

"Oh, Fred...he's still inside your body, even after all these years?" Nancy hesitated for a moment, but then she moved closer and took hold of his left hand, on the right hand he wore the glove with claws. Freddy nodded his head slowly, looking down at their folded hands.

"It's some kind of a exorcism, isn't it?" Nancy believed in exorcism now, after seeing his memory.

"Yeah, sort of...But around you I can be my old self, If I try hard enough that is, he keeps holding me back." Freddy clenched his teeth together, breathing in sharply as he did so.

"Then let me chase and hunt him down! I'll get rid of him for you!"

"Oh, Nancy...it's not that easy, he's strong. And I'm afraid I have to leave you soon, before he make me do something terrible...I refuse to hurt you one more time, it'll break my heart."

"You didn't hurt me last time we met, in your boiler..."

"No, I didn't...but I wasn't behaving as the gardener you once knew, I was acting like a rude dirtbag." Nancy thought of how he'd lapped up her blood with his tongue and she blushed. Nancy tilted her head to the side, not daring to look into his eyes. Freddy reached out his hand and touched her carefully by the cheek, rubbing his thumb along her jawline. Their eyes met, his blue ones and her brown chocolate eyes. With his right hand he carefully traced her long neck, the cold metal of the claws sending shivers down her spine.

"This is the demon's claw..." Nancy whispered and gently took hold of the sharp razors. Without thinking, she grabbed the edge of the glove and quickly slid it off his hand.

"We must destroy it!" Nancy didn't recognize her voice, it felt as if someone controlled her vocal, told her what do do. She didn't hesitate. With resolution, Nancy moved towards her closet and picked up an empty box. She put the glove inside of it and closed the box securely.

"Let's burn it. Do you think that'll help?" Nancy questioned with hope written in her eyes. Freddy slowly made his way towards her, a thoughtful expression written in his face.

"Perhaps..."

"Then let's do it! Come'on, let's go to the garage, we keep the tools in there."

"Tools? I thought you said we were going to burn it." Freddy raised an thick brow, looking calmly into her face as if nothing was wrong.

"That too." Nancy replied and took hold of his hand. "Come with me," she said and suddenly became aware of something; she was experiencing a deja vu. A long time ago, during preschool, Freddy had said the same words, and something more... "If you can keep a secret, I'll take you to a special place"...She knew now that it wasn't Freddy who'd said those familiar words, it was the demon inside of him.

They hurried out of her room and down the stairs, trying their best to not wake her father, as they made their way towards the front door. He wouldn't believe his own eyes if he'd seen Fred Krueger, the man everyone thought were dead. Nancy wasn't dreaming, Fred Krueger was truly with her, for real and not in a dream-world. It had happened before, three years ago in the basement where Quentin found the pictures of her, the day she cut his hand and throat. As she remembered that event, new tears bubbled up in her eyes.

"...Nancy..." He spoke softly, looking warmly into her tearful eyes. "What's wrong?" They were out of sight, out in the dark by the garage. Freddy didn't bother to whisper anymore, as he figured that Nancy's father wouldn't hear them anyway.

"I'm s-so sorry, Fred," she somehow managed to mumble. "I harmed you in the basement, remember?"

"You didn't knew the background of my evil side, Nancy. How could you know that, huh?" He smiled warmly, looking playfully into her face. They made their way inside the garage as Nancy cried silently, unable to stop. Freddy grabbed each of her upper arms, carefully squeezing her warm limbs. "It's alright, I'm not mad at you...and even though it made me angry, or the demon, I was glad you did it. I felt as if I deserved it."

"The monster deserved it, not you, Fred Krueger. I'm beginning to realize something..."

"What?" Freddy whispered without breaking eye contact. "Yes, Nancy?"

"I still look at you as my friend, my old feelings for you are growing, I guess. I adored you as a child and looked at you as a good man, therefore I couldn't ever bring myself to hate you."

"Even after what I've done? I murdered your friends...and your mother!" Fred shook his head, the bristly forelock falling down, obscuring his stare under a mess of dark hair.

"It still hurts me...that mom died," Nancy muttered as her cold eyes fell upon his face. "But as I've already told you, I can't bring myself to hate you...well, I DID hate you after that horrible day!" Nancy's voice grew harsh. She curbed her anger and sorrow, closing her eyes tight. When she opened them again, she looked into the closed face, caressing the bitter hardness of his expression with her warm stare.

"I know now that it wasn't you, the real Fred Krueger, who killed her...the demon did it," Nancy then said. Freddy didn't answer her and she carefully reached up her hand to caress his cheek, something she'd never thought she would do to HIM! Freddy shifted a little uncomfortably where he stood, not used to a young woman's warm touch. He held his breath as she carefully came closer, touching her hand on his cheek as she did so. They locked eyes.

"Nancy, I...ahh!" Something inside him did hurt and he knew immediately that it was the demon. It was angry, and the demon didn't bother to let the dark soul and his dearest friend be, interrupting their moment as quick as he could...Nancy backed away with a startled shriek

"Fred! Is it the...the demon?" Freddy closed his eyes tight, seemingly because of a horrible pain inside his body. He nodded, then looked down at the box in her shaking hands. "The claws," he simply said and Nancy knew what to do.

"You'll be okay, right? It won't kill you if I...destroy it?" Nancy had to know this. Freddy seemed to be unsure about this, but since he didn't bother to think it through, he shook his head. "Just do it, Nancy!" He still kept his face in her hand, yearning for her warm touch and comfort. Nancy wanted to be supportive, but she had to do something immediately, and so she rushed to where she knew her father kept their tools...she needed the ax.

It all happened in a blur, through half-lidded eyes...Nancy fetched her daddy's ax, grabbing it tight. Her arms rose high in the air, the heavy, bladed head of the ax swung as she moved her arms and let it hit the claws. The claws were trembling, as if it wanted back to its owner, but Nancy never gave it the chance to escape, as she crushed the bladed fingers to smithereens. It crunched and crackled as the razors got destroyed, crushed under a sharp blade of an ax.

Nancy straightened in her full height, and shook back her hair as she did so. Behind her back, she could hear heavy steps and a throaty breath which send shivers down her spine. She slowly turned around, her heart banging at her chest as bad feelings popped up in her head. She looked him in his dead, cold eyes, a cruel grin spread across his fire damaged face.

"Fred Krueger...? W-why have you turned into..."

"Fred Krueger, you say?" The demon said as he came closer. "Do I look like your dear gardener, huh?"

Nancys jaws dropped upon and she didn't knew what to say or do.

"Answer me!" He commanded.

"No!" She finally replied, earning a creepy laugh from the burned monster. He touched her with the claws, toying with her dark brown hair.

"I didn't fucking think so," he said and chuckled deeply.

Nancy looked down as she became aware of his claws. "I destroyed those," she blurted out. The demon smirked at this, raising his arm slowly as he eyed her up and down. "Oh yeah? Well, it seems to me that they're fixed. So much for you struggle, huh?" An sudden anger filled Nancy after hearing those words.

"You fucking bastard! Where is the real Fred Krueger, you evil demon? Let him be, or I'll kill you myself!"

_"Yes, do it...kill him, destroy the demon."_ The familiar voice rang in her head and Nancy pulled back with a startled shriek, as she could hear Fred Krueger's voice inside of her head. Nancy wanted to call for him, shout in desperation. But she kept her mouth shut, aware of the demons sharp hearing. He could find out if she communicated with Fred. This had to be done discretely, out of the demons earshot. She slowly backed away from the burned up figure, and didn't stop until she felt the bladed head of the ax against her foot. _"Now, grab the ax and kill the monster!"_ Fred's voice spoke inside her head. Nancy figured he would hear her, if she only spoke the words inside her head, instead of talking out loud: _"You sure, Fred? It won't kill you?"_

_"Do it, Nancy!"_

"What's wrong, little slut? You are scared, eh? I can almost feel your fear...your heart are banging inside your lovely chest..." He chuckled, the horrible demon inside the dead, burned corpse. "Come to me, little Nancy...Be a good girl, and I'll take you to a special place...we've been there before, remember? You enjoyed it so much."

"Fuck you, demon!" Nancy shrieked and finally bent down and grabbed the ax she'd just crushed the claws with. As she hit the metal blade across the scarred face, a horrible sound filled the garage with creepy terror. The burned skin melted, Nancy suddenly noticed, and caught a glimpse of red eyes in a black, smoked face. Long, smoky fingers reached to touch her as Fred's red and green striped sweater crumbled. The murderer, the demon who'd captured Fred, slowly turned into ashes. But she could no longer hear Fred Krueger, her dear gardener. What if she had destroyed what had been left of him...the burned up figure...?!

"Fred!" Nancy shrieked as tears bubbled up in her eyes. She spoke his name over and over again inside her head, but he didn't answer. In front of her, the demon shrieked and growled as it was slowly dying. "You can't defeat me, you whore! Not this time too! I want you dead!"

Nancy forgot about tears, sorrow, desperation, everything, as she made her way towards the black devil. "I am defeating you! And I'm doing it for Fred and for my mother!" Nancy seized the opportunity to destroy the monster once and for all, with a final killing thrust between his evil, red eyes. And so she stabbed the ax through the demons smoky head, wiping away the red irises, killing him. "In God's name, die!" She didn't knew where the words came from, she wasn't particularly religious...but it felt right. And it felt as if it had helped her on the way...the demon was defeated, removed away from she and Fred.

"Freddy!" She called out as she suddenly became aware of his closeness. He was with her in the garage, but he lied on the floor! She rushed towards him, so very concerned for the x-gardener she lately had been playing with, years ago during preschool.

"Oh, God...Fred, you're all right?" He didn't answer. Ashes from the dead demon swirled around, and pieces of metal and trash lay cluttered around her feet. "Freddy?" Her voice sounded like a weak beep. "No, it can't be true," she whispered, scrambling on her knees and hands to get as close to him as possible.

"You're finally free...he's dead," Nancy said desperately as she gathered the man in her arms, holding him in a tight grasp. He felt so cold and dead in her arms, as lifeless as one could be. She reached her trembling fingers to feel his pulse, and she felt nothing at all! She shook the pale, bruised body, trying to awake him even though she knew it was a foolish thing to do...it was no use!

"No, no, no, no! Y-you can't leave me now, I saved you! I thought you were dead from beginning with! This shouldn't be happening!"

Freddy had originally fair skin, but now it was as white as clean snow, and he seemed so motionless and empty! Dead like a body in a coffin.

Nancy shook her head and the long forelock fell down her face, obscuring her desperate expression and tearful eyes. She sobbed once, not understanding this...her special friend couldn't be dead! He had been originally burned to death for god's sake! She didn't understand ONE thing at all! This shouldn't be happening! "Fred..." She sobbed again, clutching his head to her chest. She cradled him in her arms, like a mother who lulls her baby to sleep.

This COULD not be happening. He should not be dying...he didn't die! No! She had always looked at him as an evil bastard, a man who kills children. But the demon had tricked them all, he'd made everyone believe that Fred Krueger was a horrible man. Because of this mistake, he got murdered, burned to death by the angry parents. It wasn't until now, this evening, that she finally found out the truth...Fred Krueger was a true friend, a man who had protected her, and loved her. He cared about her...during preschool she had been his life, his special, dearest little friend. No, this could not be happening to him!

"I love you," she sobbed into the hollow of his neck, her big tears soaking his white and blue striped shirt. "I remember you as a good man, not the horrible demon...the demon is fading from my mind, but not you, I..." She stopped talking, totally unable to continue. His head fell back as she pulled his chest to her own, the dark mess of his hair hanging down from his scalp.

A desperate sound tore through her throat as she gaped against his cold flesh, crying hard into his chest.

She straightened a little to look into his calm face, admiring each little feature...the thick brows..the high cheekbones...the dark hair...the thin but yet soft lips...and her personal favorite, the ocean eyes, but they were closed. A tear rolled down her cheek and dripped to Fred's forehead. She took hold of his hand and pressed his fingers to her lips, kissing the fingertips one by one.

Nancy bowed her head, paying no attention to the tears which rolled off her face and rained down at the man in her arms. She didn't notice the flutter of his eyelashes, nor the movement of his mouth. But she suddenly felt a slight movement against her chest. Nancy's head popped as she let out a surprised mumble, looking into the face with huge eyes.

"Fred?" She barely dared to believe the hopes which was given her. Hope, oh yes, yes! She took hold of his shoulders, carefully shaking him to 'wake' him up. "Fred, do you hear me?" He let out a mumble, and it was music to her ears! "You're alive!" She grabbed him harder, tightening the grasp around his body. And finally, FINALLY, he opened his eyes and she looked into the beautiful ocean colored irises. New tears began to bubble up, and it dripped down to his face once again. She laughed and cried at the same time, smiling like a crazy fool. "You're alive," she sobbed, and nuzzled into the hollow of his neck, hugging him tight.

"Nancy," he murmured and reached his fingers to her chin, carefully touching her skin. Something within her melted as the sound of his voice filled her ears. "Fred," she replied, sentiment clogging her throat. "You're alive." She didn't knew how to stop herself from saying those words over and over again. She dimly heard Fred chuckle, but she didn't pay any attention to his obvious amusement as she hugged him again.

"You really scared me," she mumbled into the crock of his neck, sniffing in the scent of his skin. "I thought you were dead..."

"That was never my plan...I just felt sick for a moment, the demons slow passing made me weak and almost dead." He let out a shaking breath, and shook back his shaggy hair as he did so.

"But you're dead from beginning with, aren't you?" Nancy wasn't so sure anymore. Fred shrugged. "Yeah, that's what I've always thought...I was burned to death in my boiler. But I guess I..." He shrugged again, earning a sound of disbelief from his friend. "I'm not a ghost, I think..."

"Then you must be an angel," Nancy blurted out, smiling as new happy tears began pricking at her chocolate eyes. Fred slowly straightened up, leaving her warm lap which he'd enjoyed resting his head on. "You're my guardian," Nancy murmured softly, looking warmly into his face.

"Yeah, I guess so...I'll protect you, Nancy, my dearest friend." He cupped her face gently, smiling warmly as he leaned forward, their bodies almost touching. "So...you were worried about me, eh? Nancy, that really touches me..." Nancy's eyes widened a bit, her heart beating quickly. Friend, he said. Well, THAT statement didn't matched to what he was doing right now! But she didn't move or speak, as he slowly leaned his face closer to hers, staring into the dark brown eyes of the young lady in front of him.

Nancy enjoyed the small distance between them, and the contact between her skin and his hands. Nancy looked at him in disbelief and admiration. Believe it or not, but she really did find him interesting and slightly...magnificent? Yes, very magnificent indeed! She was his friend, his little Nancy from preschool...this shouldn't be happening! But how was she supposed to refuse him to lean in, when she couldn't help but do the same?!

Their lips met in a innocent, almost friendly, chaste kiss. It was just a quick peck, Nancy assured herself. But it was full of electricity and sparkles, that told her everything. She enjoyed it! It felt good...And since she knew now that he wasn't a bad person after all, she acknowledged her feelings for him.

Nancy pulled back to see his expression. She searched and found delight in his ocean eyes! Without thinking it through, Nancy leaned forward to press her lips against his soft, wet mouth again. As she did so, she gently pressed her breasts against his chest, clutching his shoulders with both hands. Fred reached his hand to her head, his fingers curling in her long, dark brown hair. He let out a surprised mumble as she deepened their kiss, kissing him long and full on his mouth. He broke hold all too soon, looking into her face with a shocked expression. He trembled ever so slightly.

"Nancy, I-I just want to...apologize...you've been suffering for so long, because of your friends and your mothers passing. I'm so, so sorry."

"It's all right," Nancy said and touched his cheek. "It's all right, my guardian..." They kissed again. Fred smiled against her mouth, wrapping his arms around her body. "Nancy..." He whispered between the kisses. "..I...must...go...now..." Nancy moaned softly against his warm skin. "Why, Fred?"

"This is your world," he said and pulled back to see her surprised expression. "I must go, but this time I won't kill...I am different because of your love. Thank you, my dearest friend."

"Take me with you," Nancy immediately said, begging him with her eyes. Fred shook back his shaggy forelock, making eye contact with the beautiful girl in front of him. Her swollen mouth appeared to be a red rosebud, soaked in honey. She had kind chocolate yes. "I can't...I want you to live a happy life here, in this world."

"But I want to be with you, you're my friend...I-I love you," Nancy replied as tears pricked at her eyes. "I love you too," he said and hugged her, holding her in a tight grasp. "But I can't take you with me..."

"Are you leaving me?"

"Yes, but we'll meet again. I promise." Fred reached up his hand to wipe away her tears. "Very soon, little Nancy...Now, up with your head. Smile." Nancy did as told, turning her lips up into a smile, the corners of her mouth curling. "That's my girl," Fred murmured as he leaned in to press his lips against her forehead.

"Farewell, my friend...we'll soon meet again, I am your guardian, after all." He stood up on his feet, straightening in his full height. He helped her up as well, taking hold of her small hand, it almost disappeared inside his big one. "Now, remember what I've told you...we're going to meet each other very soon, okay?" Nancy nodded her head and he smiled.

"Good bye then," Nancy said as she let go off his hand, knowing very well that he would leave her now, and so he did. She watched him disappear in the dark, making his way towards 'his world'. But she wasn't sad about this, he had promised to soon meet her again.

"Good bye," she repeated. "My dearest Fred..."


End file.
